Congestive heart failure (CHF) or heart failure is a condition in which the heart can not pump enough blood to the body's other organs and tissues. This pumping deficiency can result, for example, from one or more of the following instances: (a) narrowed arteries that supply blood to the heart muscle such as those in coronary artery disease; (b) past heart attack, or myocardial infarction, with scar tissue in the heart muscle that interferes with the heart muscle's normal work; (c) high blood pressure; (d) heart valve disease such as those due to past rheumatic fever or other causes; (e) primary disease of the heart muscle itself, called cardiomyopathy; (f) heart defects present at birth such as those from congenital heart defects; and (g) infection of the heart valves and/or heart muscle itself such as those from endocarditis and/or myocarditis.
The “failing” or weakened heart keeps working but not as efficiently as it should. People with heart failure generally have difficulty exerting themselves because they become short of breath and tired. As blood flow from the heart slows as a result of heart failure, blood returning to the heart through the veins backs up, causing congestion in the tissues drained by the veins. Often swelling, i.e., edema results from the back up of fluid in the veins. Most often the swelling is observed in the legs and ankles, but swelling can happen in other parts of the body, too. Sometimes fluid collects in the lungs and interferes with breathing, causing shortness of breath, especially when a person is lying down. Heart failure also can affect the kidneys' ability to dispose of sodium and water. The retained water increases the edema.
There are potentially a variety of causes of congestive heart failure, and certain of these causes may be more directly treatable than others. For example, if the heart failure is caused by an abnormal heart valve, the valve can be surgically replaced. Generally, if the heart becomes so damaged that it can't be repaired, a more drastic approach may be considered. For cases with more severe damage to the heart, a heart transplant can be an option. Most people with mild and moderate congestive heart failure can be treated, and proper medical supervision may prevent the patients from becoming invalids.